Huxloween: The Thirty Night Trial
by KatHarkness-Katara
Summary: Kylo Ren has been ordered to take a Dark Force test, the Thirty Night Trial. He's dragged his favourite First Order General along with him. For the Tumblr Huxloween event.
1. Chapter 1: Pumpkin Spice Latte

**Huxloween: The Thirty Night Trial**

 **Day One Pumpkin Spice Lattes**

"Why am I here?" Hux griped.

"I told you," Kylo sighed. "Mission from Supreme Leader. We've got to meet my contact here-"

"That's why _you're_ here, Kylo; but why am _I_ here?" Hux corrected.

"Because it's easier if I have someone to watch my back, okay?" Kylo sniped.

"What about your Knights?"

"Believe it or not, they have their own missions." Kylo paused, seeing Hux's decidedly unimpressed look. "This is happening in seven different places," he admitted. "The others also had to get backup."

"And you had to pick me," Hux grumbled.

"You like spending time with me. Why are you making such a fuss?" Kylo demanded.

"I don't like leaving the Finalizer and Starkiller, you know that."

"You said it was being left in safe hands."

"Yes, but not the best hands."

"Whose would those be?"

"Mine!"

Kylo sighed. "Colonel Datoo can manage just fine," he said soothingly. "And if it's really an emergency, Supreme Leader will recall us."

Hux 'hmph'ed, stopped arguing. They were entering a large settlement, and their civilian clothes would only deflect so much attention.

Kylo led the way easily to a small teahouse. Hux paused to look at the name before following his co-commander inside. Café Star-Costa. He snorted. Commercial garbage.

Kylo was already at the counter. "Two pumpkin spice lattes," he demanded.

Hux frowned; he'd never heard of the beverage, and would have preferred a plain, strong caf.

"Yes, sir; and what's your name?" the girl serving asked.

Kylo seemed to be resisting the urge to growl. "Bail," he snapped.

"That'll be four creds," the girl said.

Kylo handed over a five-cred chip. "Keep the change."

"Thank you sir."

Kylo tugged Hux away as a pack of young wastrels poured in. "The corner booth," he murmured. "I'll bring the drinks."

Hux made himself comfortable, and Kylo soon rejoined him. The two cups were labelled 'Bayle'. "What are these supposed to be?" he asked, sipping his drink.

"Caf with milk, spice, flavouring and whipped cream," Kylo asked. "It's how our contact is going to recognise us. Sorry; I know you like your caf black as your father's heart."

Hux snorted. He would have taken offense had anyone else made that joke, simply to defend the family honour, but Kylo had earned the right to insult Hux Sr after a nasty incident involving a rather angry missive being sent uncoded to the Finalizer for all to read.

"Well, I would ask which of you's the Knight," a new voice announced, "But Gingersnap's clearly military."

Hux snapped his head up. The newcomer had a bright red scarf wrapped tightly around his neck, in contrast to his light green shirt and trousers. Kylo shuffled aside to allow him to join them.

"So you Dark Knights want to do the Thirty Night Trial," the man said.

"Obviously," Kylo snapped.

"Hey, calm down," the man replied. "Have you even explained what this is about to your army friend?"

Kylo stared sullenly at his cup. "No, he hasn't," Hux answered.

"It's a sort of test for Dark Force users," the man explained. "I was one of Emperor Palpatine's researchers, I found information on old rituals of the Sith and other non-Jedi Force users. 'Course, he didn't know I was memorising as much as possible, but Sith generally don't have good life expectancies and I wanted to have something to offer Vader when he killed the Emperor. Call it a pension plan. Anyway, the Thirty Night Trial is meant to be a sort of evaluation. The Force user and his companion are exposed to thirty nights of horror and terror, and how they deal with it kinda shows how Dark they really are."

Hux raised an eyebrow. "Sounds rather pointless."

"Oh, in the time before the Rule of Two it was a common test for potential apprentices," the researcher said dismissively. "Since then, it's been used as a way of isolating and eliminating Light weaknesses. Never actually worked, though…"

"I…don't understand," Kylo said, looking up at last.

"If you've got a weakness, a vulnerability to the Light, the Trial will show you it," the researcher explained. "Some Sith would have their apprentices do it, then use the knowledge in an attempt to remove those vulnerabilities. But some people just aren't capable of some things. And there's very few who are _really_ Dark, with no Light at all. There was one apprentice who had a very Light affection for a forest near his home. The master tried ordering his apprentice to burn the forest, but the apprentice couldn't do it. Turned on his master."

"He was weak," Kylo said harshly.

"Listen, boy, I might not know this Force, but I know what the records say," the researcher growled. "You will learn the places where the Light side holds you. These are lines you cannot cross without destroying yourself. Keep away from 'em, and you can be Dark as you like."

"It doesn't work like that," Kylo snapped.

Hux put a hand on his arm. "Hush; you're making a scene," he whispered.

Kylo calmed himself, but kept glowering.

The researcher sighed deeply. "I'm sorry, but that's what the texts say. There's several commentaries on the Trial, and that's the conclusion reached in all of them."

"Do you have copies of these commentaries?" Hux asked, watching Kylo closely.

"I'm afraid not. I lost all my research material when I had to flee Imperial Centre." The researcher laid a datapad on the table. "This has the details for the Trials you, your Knights and their companions will undergo. Well, where to go, and as much as I can remember about the Thirty Night Trial. Good luck."

The researcher got up, nodded to Hux and Kylo, and left.

Hux snagged the datapad. "Let's get going. We can review this on the way."


	2. Chapter 2: Bonfire

**Huxloween: The Thirty Night Trial**

 **Day Two: Bonfire**

Hux leaned back against a log. He was half-wrapped in bedroll that was much cosier than standard First Order issue, courtesy of Kylo, but he'd rather be thrown in the garbage chute than admit he liked the better gear.

Speaking of Kylo, if he didn't stop poking their campfire, he'd…yes, his stick was on fire.

""It's not that funny," the Force user snapped, tossing the flaming branch on the fire.

"Kylo, we're camping out here waiting for something to come and terrify us out of our minds, so we learn something about ourselves," Hux drawled. "If I want to hang on to every piece of humour you provide, I will."

Kylo snorted and wormed into his own bedroll on the other side of the fire from Hux. He'd started becoming nervous as the sun set, clearly beginning to be apprehensive about the trials. Hux wasn't sure if he'd even experience anything, not being Force sensitive himself. Even if he did, could it be any worse that his father's Academy?

The campfire flared. Hux found his eyes drawn to it, a dark shape resolving itself in the centre. Long, thin…humanoid…with a suddenly familiar mask…

Hux glanced up at Kylo, who seemed fixated on the image. Flames leapt between them, and seemed to form a deep red streak along Kylo's face. Blood, a deep wound.

Then the ground cracked open, and the flames poured out.

* * *

It wasn't fair that Darth Vader had been given a Jedi's pyre. He deserved a Sith's tomb. But Skywalker had burnt him, and taken the remains to his temple, where Kylo had found them years later. The helmet was safe in his quarters on the Finalizer, the rest entombed on the Sith planet Moraband in the Valley of the Dark Lords. Kylo had seen to that himself.

The helmet wilted in the fire, going from shiny and flawless to warped and corroded.

Then the ground split open.

Kylo started, looking up to see growing horror on Hux's face. Pain suddenly lanced through him; his hip, his shoulder, his face. He fell back, squirming out of his bedroll. He reached for his lightsaber, but only succeeded in knocking it away. Hux was also on his feet, but the crack in the earth, spewing fire and brimstone widened, a chasm forming.

"Hux!"

"Kylo!"

Hux tried to lunge forward, and his flame-red hair blended in with the inferno.

* * *

Kylo looked to be struggling, injured, blood-streaked. Hux had to get to him. Snoke would not let him return without the Knight, and he was getting fond of the man, damn it.

Hux lunged, and jumped through the fire-

Crashing into Kylo in the quiet wilderness.

The campfire licked around his ankle and set fire to his trousers, making Hux yelp and roll over, grab a bottle of water and pour it over his leg. Then he looked up at Kylo's unmarred face.

"Everything's back to normal," Kylo remarked. He was breathing hard and looked startled, but not much more.

"I thought…" Hux trailed off, shaking his head.

"What?"

"It doesn't matter."

Kylo reached out and took Hux's hands in his, removing the empty water bottle. "For a moment I thought we were being separated, that I'd never be with you again. When you jumped, I thought for sure you'd fall into the chasm."

Hux stared at the ground. "I thought you were going to die. That you were too injured to get out of danger."

Kylo squeezed his hands, as much to reassure himself as Hux. "Well, I'm fine. You're fine. This must have been the first trial. It was more…intense than I expected."

Hux straightened himself. "Yes. Intense. We'll be better prepared tomorrow. It just…came as a surprise. Bit of a scare. Nothing to it." He pulled away from Kylo.

Kylo reluctantly let him go. "Yes. Bit of a scare. Nothing else."

There was an awkward pause. "We should sleep," Hux said. "We've a fair hike to get to the next trial site."

"Yeah."

Kylo retrieved his lightsaber before crawling into his bedroll, and Hux returned to his own.

Bit of a scare. Nothing else.


	3. Chapter 3: Meta Horror

**Huxloween: The Thirty Night Trial**

 **Day Three: Meta Horror**

There was a long, loud, plaintive howl.

Hux glanced towards the window, but Kylo had already pulled the curtain. Reluctantly, he left the cosy chair by the fireplace to check outside.

From the window. Not by opening the door. Not if there was a wild animal hunting.

There was just darkness, and the reflection of the interior of the cabin he and Kylo were occupying for the night. "Kylo?"

"Hmm?" The Force user didn't look up. He'd managed to get dirt all over the front of his helmet during the hike and was near totally absorbed in polishing it clean.

"Kylo, could you do a Force scan thing and check if there's anything out there?"

Kylo huffed and closed his eyes. "Trees…bushes…plants…birds…small woodland animals…"

"Any large, canine predators?"

"I don't- Ah!"

Kylo started as Hux jumped back from the window. Something had slammed into it. He didn't get a good look, but there was hair, and fangs.

"Okay, there's something out there," Hux answered his own question, returning to peering through the glass. "Come have a look."

Kylo joined him. "It came out of nowhere, I swear," he complained. "Not sentient. Just hunger and…urges."

"Hunger and urges," Hux repeated. "Urges like, perhaps, eating us?"

"Uh, yes. And then finding a female."

"Too much information," Hux muttered. There was a shadowy shape visible, but he couldn't quite work out what it was. Then it raised itself on its hind legs, lifted its snout to the full moon, and howled.

"I think it's a werewolf," Kylo said, sounding mildly interested. "A humanoid who-"

"Turns into a rabid wolf," Hux finished. "A skin-changer that requires a certain intensity of lunar reflection to change. But I don't think they can open doors, so we're fine." He dropped the curtain.

"It might break through the door," Kylo remarked, but he didn't sound terribly concerned about it either.

"You brought your lightsaber," Hux shrugged. He twisted his wrist and half-drew a knife hidden up his sleeve. "And I'm hardly defenceless."

"I think we need silver to kill it permanently," Kylo frowned.

"What about fire?"

"Okay, or fire, but my 'saber might not count…"

"Doesn't matter," Hux shrugged. "We carve it up and put it on the fire. End of problem."

Kylo smirked, but before he could respond, there was a knock at the door. The Knight pulled back the curtain again and peered out. "Hux, there's a man in some sort of archaic evening dress and a cape with fangs," he said slowly.

"Let me in, little humans," a decidedly creepy voice echoed. "Let me in so I can drink your blood."

Hux looked through the window. "I think that's a vampire from some bad horror holo," he commented. "One of my dorm mates at the Academy was obsessed."

"A creature that survives purely on the blood of other creatures?" Kylo scoffed. "That's just…I mean...for one thing, wouldn't that cause nutritional difficulties?"

Hux titled his head. He hadn't thought about that for a long time, not since his dorm mate had been raving about how cool it must be to drink blood. "Well, the minor nutrients, vitamins and minerals and such, they'd probably be in sufficient quantities," he mused. "Other things, proteins and sugars and lipids, might be more tricky. It would probably depend on how well-nourished the victim was."

"But…you need bulk in your food," Kylo protested. "Fibre. So that you can…um…pass waste…"

"I suppose…if you could absorb one hundred per cent of your sustenance you might not need to pass solid waste," Hux hypothesised. "But the digestive tract would have to be different, and I'm not sure about excretion. Hmm."

"And he can't get in without an invitation or he'd have barged in rather than knocking, so we're fine," Kylo shrugged.

"Yes, I suppose. Perhaps we should take turns to keep watch, though," Hux suggested. "In case the werewolf comes back."

"Good idea," Kylo nodded. "Do you want first or second?"

"First, I think," Hux decided. "I'm not particularly sleepy. But you can make breakfast in the morning."

Kylo nodded and made himself busy arranging his bedroll on one of two beds in the cabin. Then there was a strange, sort of cracking sound. "What was that?"

Hux stared out the window, and then turned back to him. "You won't believe this, but there's an army of reanimated corpses coming out of the ground…"


	4. Chapter 4: Dolls

**Huxloween: The Thirty Night Trial**

 **Day 4: Dolls**

"This is a really horrid camping trip, Ren," Hux complained.

"Oh do shut up," Kylo grunted.

Hux chucked a tiny stick on their latest campfire. "I'll admit the fiery chasm on the first night was freaky, but last night was just… _sad_."

"The spirits forming the trials are just feeling us out, gauging our response," Kylo said, aiming for soothing but hitting patronizing.

"Yes, well-" Hux cut off as something fell out of the sky and landed on his lap. He picked it up. It was a small, fabric doll with a somewhat familiar mask. Just to confirm, Hux pulled the plastic helmet off. "Kylo, I seem to have been given a small doll of Khee Ren," he commented.

"What?" Kylo looked up, baffled.

"It's Khee," Hux repeated. He knew all of the Knights, and was quite fond of Khee. He was quite fond of all of them, really.

At that moment there was a piercing scream that seemed to come from the doll in Hux's hand before it dissolved into a double-handful of blood red scraps. They both stared, alarmed, at the remains.

"I hope that's not portentous," Kylo said, worried.

"I'm…sure she's fine," Hux said, but he felt strangely hollow, almost as though he had borne witness to the destruction of the Knight.

There was another thud, and another. More dolls started dropping out of the sky. Kylo picked them up. "Kellan…Kwartho…Kelso…Hux, my Knights. You don't think something's happened?"

"They're strong, Kylo. They're fine. You can call them in the morning and-" He broke off as the dolls screamed, and dissolved.

Kylo looked paler than usual in the reflected firelight. "It's just a trial to scare us," he mumbled. "And so what if I care for my Knights? They're more of a strength than a weakness anyway."

"Exactly," Hux nodded. "Nothing wrong with that."

There was another thud. "That's Phasma," Kylo said hollowly. "Didn't you once call her the best 'trooper captain you'd ever met?"

"Yeah…" Hux said hesitantly. A few more dolls appeared. Colonel Datoo. A handful of lieutenants. Various other officers. Most of them Hux felt ambivalent over, but there was Mitaka, so wonderfully loyal and extra diligent just for Hux.

More and more dolls. Ex comrades. Former dorm mates. A few landed directly in Hux's lap. His father, and his long lost younger brother.

He tore his eyes away from his beloved brother's form and looked at Kylo. His co-commander was also surrounded by the little fabric effigies. There appeared to be a male and a female in his lap, a blonde in brown robes at his knee, something fluffy.

Another soft thump caused Hux to look down, as a tiny ginger cat figure landed next to him.

With a final sound, the Supreme Leader appeared atop the massed pile of First Order personnel.

And then the screams began.


	5. Chapter 5: Halloween Fashion

**Huxloween: The Thirty Night Trial**

 **Day 5: Halloween Fashion**

Their 'campsite' for the night was an old, abandoned castle. Exercising appropriate caution, Hux insisted on only occupying only a small sitting room. Kylo had then insisted on hunting for a working bathroom. Hux indulged him until the third with no running water, then dragged him back to their little lair.

Then Kylo tried to convince Hux to find a kitchen to do something more exciting than making stew out of rations. Hux eventually got Kylo settled by suggesting he roast protein bars over the fire on the end of the poker.

It was only the fourth night of thirty, and already they were getting on each other's nerves. Hopefully it was more teething troubles than losing patience with each other.

Kylo set the latest toasted protein bar on one of the plates from the two cook kits and pulled away the small kettle he'd been suspending with the Force over the fire. Hux had set out their mugs with powdered caf and spice tea respectively, and the pot with carbohydrate soup was still floating, just starting to bubble. It wasn't much of a meal, but they'd had to prioritize ensuring they had enough supplies for the whole journey. Sixty carb pouches, ninety protein bars, three jars of multivitamin supplements, ninety drink sachets each. Kylo had suggested hunting just for some variety to their diet, but Hux didn't want to risk not reaching their designated campsites before sunset.

It would be a long trial.

Kylo was divvying up the soup when Hux heard it. He stood and went to the door, listening carefully. "Kylo? Can you hear music?"

The Master of the Knights of Ren looked up and cocked his head. "I think so," he said slowly. "Do you think this might be the trial?"

Hux frowned. "Whatever it is will be over by sunrise, correct?"

"According to the records."

"And it can't actually affect reality?"

"Except by provoking us into acting."

"So we don't have much to lose by going to see what's happening."

Kylo threw up his hands. "Then why didn't you let me explore earlier?"

"In a castle that has been derelict for who-knows-how-long, and could be dangerously in disrepair in places?"

Kylo pouted, but didn't protest. He carefully moved their dinners away from the fire and stood. "I'm doing this because I want to," he clarified. "Not because you told me to."

"Of course you want to," Hux mumbled. "That's why I feel safe telling you to do it."

"And is that why you make me do the cooking?"

"We don't need to cook the rations. They're ready to eat."

"And the hot water for your caf?"

"If you're going to insist on cooking the rations, you might as well boil some water while you're at it."

"I hate you."

"I know, but you still asked me to accompany you."

"I must have been mad."

Hux snorted. They sauntered through the castle, following the sound of music. It sounded like a waltz, played on old-fashioned but traditional instruments. They tracked it down to the ballroom and went in.

The only word that could adequately describe the scene inside was macabre. Creepy would be close, as would spooky, and disturbing wouldn't be too far from the truth.

There were dancing skeletons in evening dress or ball gowns, or very skimpy outfits. There were reanimated corpses. There were people covered in hair with fangs and claws. There were strange, eldritch creatures.

"This is…something else," Hux murmured.

"Yeah," Kylo echoed. The dancing skeletons waltzed. The other beings bustled about.

"Should we join them?" Hux suggested. He glanced at his companion and started.

Kylo had somehow acquired makeup across his face to resemble a skull. His usual black robes had been replaced with a black gown resplendent with black feathers and shimmering black gems. His bare arms and what was visible of his chest had been marked to shown bones of pale, unpainted flesh.

"Woah," Kylo murmured. "You're certainly dressed the part."

Hurriedly, Hux looked down at himself. His Covert Ops uniform had been replaced with a three piece suit and his hands had the same skeletal treatment as Kylo's. It didn't take a huge stretch of the imagination to guess his face now looked stripped of flesh.

"We both are," he said, trying to keep his voice steady. This was an illusion. A very creepy illusion, but just a test.

Kylo seemed to be examining his gown. "My grandmother used to wear these sorts of outfits," he commented, apropos of nothing. "Always with full sleeves though, and with less weird makeup. I always wondered what it would feel like."

Hux offered his hand. "Well, Milady, would you like to find out what it feels like to dance in it?"

Kylo cracked a smile, and took his hand.


	6. Chapter 6: Transformation

**Huxloween: The Thirty Night Trial**

 **Day 6: Transformation**

Once again, they braved the great outdoors. And tonight, it was raining.

"I told you we ought to bring a tent," Hux growled, curling up beneath his coat.

Kylo had pulled his cowl low over his head but otherwise seemed unconcerned. "You're from a planet of perpetual rain. I'd have thought you'd be used to it."

"We had monsoons," Hux grumbled. "And growing up plastered in mud whenever you dare to go outside doesn't actually endear wet weather to you."

"It's just water. Stop complaining."

"I wouldn't complain if you'd listened when I said we ought to bring a tent. 'Oh no,' you said. 'It'll be fine,' you said. 'We won't need it,' you said."

"Hux," Kylo snarled. "If we're in a tent, how are we meant to see the trial?"

Hux glowered and curled up tighter under the greatcoat. For once, he would have liked his rations as a hot stew, but they couldn't light a fire. Kylo had consented to using one of the vents of his 'saber to heat two cups of rainwater, which provided them with hot but increasingly dilute drinks, but other than that they had soggy mush. It was pretty miserable.

There was a flash of lightening. Hux started at the unexpected light, then the roll of thunder hit. "The Academy used to get hit by lightning a lot," he reminisced. "The rod kept melting. Needed replacing every other year."

Kylo chuckled. "Sounds fun."

"Not when you're inside with the flood shutters closed and you don't know if the rod will last the whole monsoon."

The lightning flashed again, this time with the thunder on its heels. "Getting closer," Kylo remarked. Hux grunted. He found a long stick, stuck it upright in the ground and hunkered down. Just in case it came any closer.

With a flash, the electric bolt set fire to the stick, and Hux felt his bones creak and his flesh flow. He yelped. Had the electricity gone through the rainwater and got him? And Kylo was screaming too. Were they going to die, not even a third of the way through the trial?

He felt his body warp, and then straighten itself. He blinked, and looked down.

A long expanse of red fur met his gaze.

"Kylo!" he screamed. It came out as a canine yowl.

He looked up, and where Kylo had been sitting was a large black wolf. It barked, then padded over to him.

Hux inched back, knocking over the no-longer-flaming stick. Something lashed around his feet. His…four feet. Ending in…paws.

It was a bushy, red and white tail.

Yelping, Hux pawed (literally) at his face. His nose and mouth had elongated into a snout. He no longer had a ginger mop on top of his head, but there were two triangular ears. "I'm a fox!" he yelped. "Kylo, I'm a fox! And you're a wolf!"

Wolf-Kylo advanced on him gently and nuzzled him soothingly. The wolf lay down, half curled, and looked pointedly from the slightly panicking Fox-Hux to the gap in his curl.

Taking the hint, Hux curled up next to his wolf. At least sleeping in thick fur would stop him feeling the wet so much.


	7. Chapter 7: Ghosts

**Huxloween: The Thirty Night Trial**

 **Day 7: Ghosts**

It had stopped raining by noon, and the night's campsite was dry. This was a huge relief to Hux, who hadn't taken too well to a night in wet fur.

So they were cooking dinner, preparing their bedrolls, and waiting for the next trial.

Hux finished his stew and cupped his caf in his hands. The steam invigorated him and helped drive out the lingering cold. He looked up when Kylo cursed. "Grandfather?" the Knight sputtered.

There was a pale, ghostly figure sitting daintily on a log. Kylo must be seeing someone different, because this was Hux's stepmother. "Milady?" he asked. "May I inquire as to your presence?"

"I was called to check up on you, boy," Maratelle Hux sneered. "Why the Force spirits are bothering with a little bastard like you is beyond me. Perhaps to stop you holding back the Knight of Ren. You always were useless."

The cruel words washed over Hux. He'd heard them often enough from his father's wife, and then from his father, and his father's officers. From pretty much everyone.

He hadn't actually minded too much when Lady Hux died. Commandant Brendol Hux was old-fashioned enough to believe in having an heir and a spare. Maratelle had only provided the one heir, Brendol Junior, now lost to them, leaving Armitage Hux the spare, and in his brother's absence, heir. It had stopped Brendol throwing him out at least.

He leaned back, ignoring the petulant spirit as she harangued him about all his many, many shortcomings. The cracks about Bren Jr hurt, but other than that…

Just hot air from a woman long dead.

* * *

Kylo stared. His grandfather wasn't in the iconic death's-head helmet, imposing armour and heavy cape, but Jedi robes. He looked…young. "How?" he choked.

Vader perched on the fallen log and leaned forward. "Ben…Kylo. I've been called by the spirits of the Trial to speak to you. Now listen."

"But…" Kylo hesitated. "Before, you've always been…" He made a vague gesture, trying to convey the image of a Sith.

Vader sighed. "That wasn't me. You've been deceived, and I've been kept away from you." The ghost tried to take Kylo's hand, but went straight through it instead.

"You told me to embrace the Dark," Kylo cried. "But…you look Jedi…"

"Kylo!" Vader said sharply. "Kylo, listen. I don't know how long I have. Embracing the Dark was the worst mistake I ever made. It enslaved me in its power and drove me to commit the most heinous deeds imaginable. I've heard you crying out against the call to the Light, but that very call is what's keeping you free. I don't expect you do be able to reject the Dark utterly; I won't demand that of you. But use it wisely. As much as it gives, it takes a hundredfold. The Light gives without such demands. It only asks that you preserve life, and the balance of justice. It's not going to destroy you."

"But it hurts," Kylo whimpered. "I feel torn apart."

"That's the Dark," Vader explained gently. "It wants you for itself. It's not easy to resist, but it's worse to give in. Take it from one who knows."

"But you were so strong," Kylo whispered.

Vader sighed again. "Yeah, I was strong. I had a Master who supported me, a Padawan who looked up to me, a wife who loved me. And I threw it away. I let fear drive me to seek power, and I lost myself. That's not something I would wish on anyone, especially not my own flesh and blood."

"I don't understand," Kylo wailed. "How do I know this is true? This is meant to be a trial! How do I know _you're_ not the deception?"

Vader smiled sadly. "Ask the Force. Not that Snoke. After all, if I am real, he wouldn't want to admit it. And I would point out that if you were still apprenticed under my Luke I would recommend not asking him either. If you must ask, ask someone who has no vested interest in your alignment."

Kylo bowed his head. "I will meditate upon this," he promised.

Vader smiled more genuinely. "That's all I can ask."

With that, the spirit faded.


	8. Chapter 8: Candy & Gore

**Huxloween: The Thirty Night Trial**

 **Day 8: Candy & Gore**

The hike had taken them through a small village. Hux had promptly commandeered one of the comms at the communications hub to catch up on the business on Starkiller, the Finalizer and all over the rest of the First Order. Kylo had lingered just long enough to work out how much time they could spend in the village before slinking off somewhere.

He reappeared two hours later to drag Hux away to continue the hike.

They settled down in the designated camping spot and started setting up for the night, same as always. Kylo revealed that he had bought them a small tent, and a few extra food supplies.

"What are those?" Hux asked curiously as Kylo opened a box with an impressive spread of items.

"It's candy," the Knight said, sounding slightly pleased with himself. "These fluffy things, they're marshmallows. We can toast them over the fire. These ones," he pointed to a row of six little tubs, "They're boiled sweets in various flavours. You suck them. I thought they might be nice for during the walks. Those are gummy bears. You chew them. Those are aniseed balls. They're for sucking too. This is toffee, and those are chocolate with little candy pieces to give that multi-coloured speckled pattern. Want to try something?" He picked up one of the gummy bears and held it out.

Hux took it and chewed. There was an explosion of sweetness. "Wow," he murmured. He'd never really had sweets before. Kylo brought some back from his missions occasionally, but he hadn't had them growing up.

Kylo smiled. "Let's toast the marshmallows after we've eaten the stew."

"Good idea," Hux said, gazing longingly at the candy box. "We need proper food. And eating first will help make the candy last."

Kyo laughed. "I'll keep hold of them. Just in case you find you can't help yourself," he teased.

Hux flushed.

The mood was a lot lighter around the camp that night. Kylo had a tube of something called curry paste which he added to his stew. Hux tried it, but didn't much like it. Kylo joked about his 'refined' palate, and Hux retorted with the accusation that Kylo didn't know how to subsist on limited resources. But there was no animosity. They'd almost forgotten the upcoming trial.

Hux noticed it first. "Kylo, have you spilt something on your shirt?" he asked.

Kylo frowned and looked down. "No," he said, puzzled. He touched the growing red stain, and his fingers came away damp. He lifted his hand to his face and sniffed.

"Blood," he murmured. "But I didn't…" He lifted his shirt.

Despite the growing pool of blood, it was plain to see the gash across his abdomen. He started, and the flesh was wrench out of place, letting the gash gape open-

And the guts beneath to start falling out.

With a cry, Hux dashed over. He frantically scooped up the fallen viscera and tried desperately to push it back into place. The stench was awful; like raw meat and death. Kylo's breathing was laboured, his skin going pale and clammy as his lifeblood poured out on the ground.

"I don't know what to do!" Hux wailed. "I- I can't-"

Increasingly desperate, he pulled Kylo's cowl from his neck and pushed it against the Knight's stomach.

"Hux," Kylo rasped. "I dunno how i' happen'. Mus' be trial. Don'…panic…" He pushed away Hux's hands.

The guts spilled out again.

Hux turned away and vomited.

They wouldn't be toasting marshmallows that night.


	9. Chapter 9: Haunted House

**Huxloween: The Thirty Night Trial**

 **Day Nine: Haunted House**

"Last time we camped in a castle, we went dancing with skeletons," Kylo commented. "This bodes well."

Hux stuck his tongue out. It was stained purple; he'd been indulging in aniseed balls all afternoon. "Your spirits seem overly-capricious," he retorted. "So far they've set us on fire, exposed us to a number of frankly pathetic supernatural horrors, destroyed effigies of our loved ones – or supposed loved ones at least – thrown us a ball, turned us into canines, let us have emotionally taxing conversations with our departed relatives, and spilled your intestines on the ground. And supposedly we're learning our weaknesses."

"Well, what have we learned?" Kylo speculated. "I learned that I fear losing you."

Hux glanced over at him, the ghost of a fond smile playing over his lips. "Ditto. We learned that the supernatural is not scary."

"I think that might be something of a simplification," Kylo corrected. "The supernatural in and of itself holds no fear, but we just barred the door and didn't let it affect us. If the werewolf had actually gotten in and bitten one of us, we probably would have reacted differently."

Hux nodded. "Agreed. I think we learned which of the people we're close to we actually care about from the dolls."

"Yeah…" Kylo sighed. "There's the Knights, Captain Phasma-"

"You like her then?" Hux queried.

Kylo shrugged. "She's good at what she does and doesn't interfere with my objectives, unlike some."

"I told you she's the best," Hux said slightly smugly.

"Yeah, yeah," Kylo grumbled. "Anyone else catch your eye?"

"A few of my officers," Hux said. "Most of them are fairly interchangeable, but they're good officers.

"I saw that mousy communications Lieutenant," Kylo commented.

"Mitaka. He's a good officer. Very loyal," Hux nodded. "I don't want to lose him."

Neither of them mentioned the effigy of Snoke. Hux couldn't tell the reason for Kylo's reticence, but knew he himself hadn't actually felt anything. The dolls' screams had hit with the sensation of loss, but Hux didn't seem to mind if Snoke was dead. The First Order was greater than one man, even the Supreme Leader, and a treacherous little voice in his head whispered that he'd quite like to rule himself.

"What about the ball?" Hux asked. "What did we learn from that?"

"We're not scared of death," Kylo shrugged. "Not really. The transformations showed that you panic if something suddenly changes drastically."

"I suddenly found myself an animal, Ren, I think that's cause for some disorientation," Hux snapped.

"Yes, of course," Kylo said soothingly. "I mean, just because it's a weakness doesn't mean it's unjustified. It means…it's something to compensate for. Something to consider in future. If something really unexpected happens, it takes you a moment to readjust. You might want to consider establishing a safeguard to give you a little extra time if something like that happens."

"If I suddenly turn into an animal again, I'm blaming you," Hux grumbled, but there was less bite to it. "I think what we learned from last night's trial is most obvious. I…would be distressed if you were seriously injured."

"It made me uncomfortable to see your distress," Kylo admitted. "I guess…we are a weakness to each other."

Hux shivered. He hated thinking of himself as weak – it was too similar to the accusations his father used to fling at him constantly – but ignoring a weakness didn't overcome it. "How can we stop the weakness becoming a vulnerability?" he asked.

"What?" Kylo asked, sounding a little distracted.

"Well, just because something's weak doesn't make it vulnerable," Hux rationalised. "You know the command bridge on a Star Destroyer is a weak point, right? Destroy it and you lose the command staff and whoever's next in command has to get all the controls and such rerouted. And the Imperial design left the command bridge vulnerable by keeping it separate from the body of the ship. By redesigning it so it's flush with the body, we have reduced the vulnerability."

Kylo stopped in his tracks. "Did you just compare distress over my disembowelment to an Imperial Star Destroyer's bridge design?"

"I'm an expert in weapon and ship design; what do you expect?" Hux snarked back.

"That's a fairly inexact metaphor," Kylo protested. "You can't redesign your heart." He turned, and gave Hux a big, soppy grin. "You love me too much!"

"Careful, or I'll eliminate the weakness with a blaster bolt between your eyes."

Kylo chuckled. "Seriously, though, I'll think about it. I mean, it can't be that much of a vulnerability to care for people." He thought a bit harder. "Can it?"

"I'm told it is," Hux said carefully.

When they arrived at the stopping point as the sun set, it turned out that their destination wasn't a castle so much as a dilapidated manor house. "I'm not sure that's safe," Hux commented.

"It'll be fine," Kylo reassured him. "If something happens, I can protect us."

The front door creaked open of its own accord Hux stared at it. "That's not promising."

"It's an invitation," Kylo said stonily. "Or maybe an instruction. Come on; we have to enter."

Sighing deeply," Hux followed Kylo into the manor. The door shut behind him with a snap. Hux wheeled, but it was dark; he couldn't see anything. He reached out to grope for the handle, but found only a smooth surface.

The snap-hum of an ignited lightsaber filled the dark room with red light, cascading off everything ad increasing to near-blinding levels. Kylo shut off the weapon, leaving them both blinking stars from their eyes.

"What was that?!" Kylo hissed. "And before you ask, my 'saber didn't' explode. It's fine."

"I have no idea," Hux muttered. "But the door seems to have vanished."

"Do you have a torch or something? Not as bright as my 'saber, I mean."

"Maybe?" Hux thought about it. "If we wrapped the head in your cowl to cut down on the light-"

Before Hux could finish, a dim glow began overhead. Hux quickly covered his eyes just in case, while Kylo pulled his cowl over his face. "It's alright," the Knight said, slightly muffled. "You can look."

Hux lowered his hands and looked. The walls were mirrored, reflecting the dim ceiling light to make a dazzling pattern. He looked at his own reflection, seeing an infinity of images cascading in every direction. Then he wheeled around to check the entrance.

The door had been replaced by another mirror.

"Kylo, the door's gone," Hux said wth false calm.

The knight looked round and cursed. "I guess we have to go on," he said, slightly tremulous.

"In a maze of mirrors?" Hux snapped. "We'd be lost forever. Can't you cut a way out?"

Kylo made a noise somewhere between a sigh and a grunt. "I can't feel anything beyond the wall. It's not possible, so this must be tonight's trial. We have to go on."

"We'd still get badly lost and confused," Hux protested. "Let me think."

He closed his eyes to block out the chaotic mosaic around him and planned. "Our eyes are deceiving us, what with all the reflections," he announced. "If we go by feel alone we'll get a clearer idea of the path."

"But if the walls are shifted around-"

"That might happen anyway," Hux interrupted. "The biggest problem is keeping track of where we've been. I have a rope in my pack. I'll tie one end around your wrist, the other around mine, and keep it coiled to pay out behind me. If you feel three sharp tugs in quick succession, come join me. If it goes very slack, come find me. I'll find the way, then signal you."

"The spirits could trick me or you or sabotage the rope," Kylo pointed out.

Hux took a deep breath. "Yes, but I was trying not to think about that, because they could trick us anyway," he said. "There's no way I can think of to avoid potential trickery, so let's go on the assumption that there won't be any and make the best plan from there. Maybe this trial is about strategy in unusual situations."

"Alright, alright," Kylo grumbled. "I just don't want to get separated."

Hux smirked. "Sweet of you, but I'm sure I'll be fine." He retrieved his rope, formed a loose cuff at either end and tied their wrists. He coiled the rest in his hand, rested the other on the mirror wall, closed his eyes, and started forward.

With every other step, he let a little of the rope coil spool out, always keeping his hand on the wall. Left, right, left again, into a small alcove and out again, the rope marked his path.

Then there was something squishy, and sticky. Hux's eyes flew open as he yelped in surprise, and he slipped on a puddle of slick red liquid. He careened into a section of corridor both mirror-lined and hung with guts. Tugging instinctively on the rope, he shrieked.

"Hux!"

Screams echoed through the house.


End file.
